THE ART OF PAINhttps://theartofpainx.wordpress.com
Thu, 24 May 2018 18:07:34 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://secure.gravatar.com/blavatar/1600f2e7912d21cf95e7babf841be8c3?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fs0.wp.com%2Fi%2Fbuttonw-com.pngTHE ART OF PAINhttps://theartofpainx.wordpress.com
THE PIERCING CHRONICLES – PART 1https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/12/04/the-piercing-chronicles-part-1/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/12/04/the-piercing-chronicles-part-1/#respondSat, 04 Dec 2010 16:39:53 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=97So, I decided to have a more hands-on approach to piercings. I haven’t gotten a new one in years so I thought “Sod it, I’ll get some cartilage pierced” – and also in the process document the rights and wrongs of body modification in order to help all you pretty people.

I went to Sting Studios/ Dollyrockers in the Oasis shopping place in Birmingham, and my first impressions of the tiny basement room weren’t great. But regardless of this I went ahead and let the uninterested girl behind the desk pierce me… Bit of a mistake.

Everything looked fine and it all seemed to have gone well. That is, until I looked in the mirror properly. It appears that the stupid girl has somehow managed to pierce me slanted, instead of straight through the cartilage. How this is possible I don’t know, but she’s managed it rather well – as demonstrated in the following picture taken the next day:

The picture’s a bit blurry, but you can still just about make it out… Not only will this probably take longer to heal but it’s also probably done a bit of damage to my ear. Fantastic!

So what lesson have we learned today kids?

Firstly, don’t trust someone to pierce you if they seem like they just want to get it over with so they can go home, and secondly, if you get a bad feeling about the piercing place – walk out. It’ll cost you nothing and save you from getting a dodgy piercing. If not 20 odd quid…

]]>https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/12/04/the-piercing-chronicles-part-1/feed/0becki27piercingslantFriday Top 5: Best Tribal Stretchinghttps://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/12/04/friday-top-5-best-tribal-stretching/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/12/04/friday-top-5-best-tribal-stretching/#respondSat, 04 Dec 2010 13:37:34 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=86As explained in previous posts tribal stretching has gone on for centuries, and I just so happened to have stumbled across a few pictures of the tradition. And the awards for best tribal tapering goes to…..

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]]>https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/12/04/friday-top-5-best-tribal-stretching/feed/0becki27kidstribesmantribalstretchedearsaHOLEY BEINGShttps://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/holey-beings/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/holey-beings/#respondMon, 29 Nov 2010 22:42:37 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=80The ritual of ear stretching has been around for decades, from tribal traditions to modern day tapering for personal fashion. Ear tunnels/plugs/tapers can be made from anything, from bone to silicone to glass and many more materials. It is said that ear stretching originated in Asian, African and South Pacific cultures and tribes for the purposes of expressing sexuality, fertility, spirituality, ownership and decoration.

In modern culture tapering of the ears is regarded as a fashion statement and a form of self- expression, but new advancements have paved the way for them to be a fashion statement with a purpose. This new advancement has come in the form of hearing aid plugs! These little nifty things mean that those with hearing disabilities no longer have to be embarrassed or hide their hearing aids, but can instead wear them, quite stylishly, literally in their ears. The new range are now up on http://www.designaffairs.com

]]>https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/holey-beings/feed/0becki27taperplugFriday Top 5: Tattoos Gone Horribly Wronghttps://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/tattoos-gone-horribly-wrong/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/tattoos-gone-horribly-wrong/#respondMon, 29 Nov 2010 21:18:34 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=72Mostly everyone’s heard the recent story about Kimberley Vlaminck, who went in for a tattoo and got 56 stars tattooed on her face only to then claim that she fell asleep during the tattoo and the artist tattooed too many on her. She later admitted she had lied and originally asked him for that many. But there are many many more cases of stupid people getting stupid tattoos in stupid tattoo shops… Here’s a few of them:

Any self-respecting, professional studio makes sure that they steralise all their equipment before and after any new customers. Don’t accept a piercing from a place that has used needles lying around or don’t get new ones out of packages before piercing.

DON’T SETTLE FOR RUDE BEHAVIOUR/ NASTY ATTITUDES

You have to remember that the piercer is going to be handling a part of your skin and they have to be respectful of their “human canvas”, so to speak -therefore don’t go to a studio where the staff seem bored, uncaring or rude. Don’t forget that if they can’t be arsed to be helpful or attentive before the piercing then they’re not going to be much help when it comes to aftercare.

GLOVES AND MARKINGS ARE A MUST!

As well as having sterile equipment, all experienced piercers recognise the importance of keeping their hands covered with medical latex gloves and marking the spot that they plan to pierce before doing so. If you come across a piercer that refuses to do either of those things, or won’t let you change the marking spot then just walk out, because chances are they’re shit at their job.

A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS… AND NO INFECTIONS

Never get pierced in a salon that doesn’t have examples of previous customers. Simple as… It either proves that they’re not experienced in it, that they didn’t care enough to be proud of their work or that all the piercing jobs they’ve done have been really shoddy. All things that you DON’T want in a body modifier.

NO LICENSE, NO PIERCING

If you’re not sure, or if it’s not made evident in the shop window, ALWAYS ask if they’re a licensed shop – and ask for proof. Trust your instincts and if you think a place may not be registered to pierce then ask them to see their license. If they’re doing their job properly they won’t be offended when you ask.

NEVER TRUST A PIERCER WHO’S DRUNK AND WANTS TO PIERCE YOU WITH A RUSTY PAPERCLIP

]]>https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/29/how-to-spot-a-dodgy-piercing-place/feed/1becki27INK NOT MINK!https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/41/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/41/#respondFri, 26 Nov 2010 19:25:50 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=41The Ink Not Mink campaign has been going on for years, and has attracted quite a big tattooed celebrity following. Set up by animal rights organisation PETA2, it was created to raise awareness about the popularity of wearing animal fur – generating many celebrity ads and posters.

Here’s are some of the most well known celebrity ads/posters that the campaign has done, and a video showing behind the scenes footage of how the ads were shot:

]]>https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/41/feed/0becki27chesterAMIPETAamardavesteveotommmyannaFriday Top 5: Fully Coveredhttps://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/friday-top-5-fully-covered/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/friday-top-5-fully-covered/#respondFri, 26 Nov 2010 18:56:32 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=30Tattoos are a pretty common these days but there’s a big difference between having a random butterfly tatt on your wrist and being covered from head to toe in the things… So this friday we pay homage to the top 5 fully covered well-known people:

1: KAT VON D

The obvious choice of tattooed ladies, but nonetheless still covered. This professional tattoo artist is no stranger to the inked world, and now has her own studio and makeup range.

2: TOMMY LEE

This tattooed Motley Crue member is pretty covered with well over 30 designs, including his sons names, his ex-girlfriends lipstick marks and MAYHEM on his stomach.

3: JEFREE STAR

Man? Woman? Who knows? Either way this musician/model/designer/micro internet celeb hybrid is almost covered from neck to toe in all kinds of designs.

4: TRAVIS BARKER

Blink 182 drummer Travis is tattooed, mohawked and pierced, so it would be stupid to not include him in the top 5. I wouldn’t be surprised if the combined pain of all his tattoos is enough to kill a small child.

5: DENNIS RODMAN

Hey, he’s weird, and I don’t think anyone knows where he’s disappeared to these days but he’s bloody covered in tatts!

]]>https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/26/friday-top-5-fully-covered/feed/0becki27KATtommyJEFFtravisDENNISHave you ever wondered what doctors look like under their white coats?https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/17/have-you-ever-wondered-what-doctors-look-like-under-their-white-coats/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/17/have-you-ever-wondered-what-doctors-look-like-under-their-white-coats/#respondWed, 17 Nov 2010 23:35:44 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=27It’s strange how the image of someone covered in tattoos has negative connotations. But gone are the days when those fully covered were regarded as criminals or dangerous. Or are they? Do people still make assumptions based on body adornments? What do you think?

]]>https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/17/have-you-ever-wondered-what-doctors-look-like-under-their-white-coats/feed/0becki27tattoo HIDDENFriday Top 5: Things They Don’t Tell You About Piercings/Tattooshttps://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/13/friday-top-5-things-they-dont-tell-you-about-piercingstattoos/
https://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/2010/11/13/friday-top-5-things-they-dont-tell-you-about-piercingstattoos/#commentsSat, 13 Nov 2010 01:13:40 +0000http://theartofpainx.wordpress.com/?p=17Now I’m someone who’s got a fair share of ink and tatts, which all seemed like good ideas at the time (and don’t get me wrong, I still love all of them) but it’s just a fact that when you’re about to get a brand new addition to the ever-growing family of body mods there are certain things that piercers or tattoo artists don’t tell you. So to aid any distressed people out there pondering the unknown here’s this Friday’s Top 5:

1: ORAL PIERCINGS CHIP YOUR TEETH.

This is something that is virtually unavoidable, unless you’re inhumanly careful or don’t leave your lip ring bar in too long after it’s been pierced ( like someone I know… *cough*me*cough*). So far 6 chips in my teeth and counting – I’m aiming to look like a toothless sailor by the time I hit 30

2: STRETCHED EAR TUNNELS SMELL TERRIBLE.

When your ears are expanded excess dead skin builds up around your plugs making your ears smell like a hobo being sick on a dead rabid dog, unless you clean them every couple of weeks. Sounds lovely dunnit?

3: UNPROFESSIONAL PIERCERS = IDIOTIC.

I know going to a licensed piercing shop takes all the fun out of going down a back alley and getting a stranger to jab your ear with a paperclip, but seriously do it properly. DONT be an idiot and get your mates to pierce your ear for you DIY. You’ll regret it… Or maybe your ear will fall off.

4: SEPTUM WHAT?

Strangely enough septum piercings don’t hurt to get done – but only if you get it done by the right piercer who knows how to get the sweet spot – the bit of skin between the two bits of cartilage in your nose. Just don’t get a bloody moron to do it (see point #3).

5: TATTS ITCH LIKE F***

About a week after getting some new ink the skin dries and turns into a irritating scab-like thing that torments you day and nightly with it’s unbearable itchiness until you just want to scrub it off your skin with a brillo pad or a cheese grater or a porcupine. Ah the joys of tattoos…